Towards Essential Hand Tremor Suppression via Pneumatic Artificial Muscles

Essential tremor (ET) is one of the most common movement disorders and can occur unexpectedly and develop indefinitely to any population unit. According to the recorded statistics of people suffering from ET, the disorder affects 5% of people worldwide, thus creating an ever-increasing need to investigate ways for its suppression and treatment. In this article, we investigate the capability of Pneumatic Artificial Muscles (PAMs) to reduce or even suppress ET leading to the relief of the sufferers. In our work, we designed and constructed two iterations of a glovelike setup and attempted to explore the possibility of suppressing ET on different parts of the hand by exerting force on the index finger and metacarpal region. For both glove iterations, we established an experimental protocol based on the adjustment of a force controller. Finally, we evaluated exhaustively the performance of our setup under multiple motion scenarios with the participation of an ET-diagnosed volunteer.

KINERJA PELAYANAN PUBLIK DINAS KEPENDUDUKAN DAN PENCATATAN SIPIL KABUPATEN SINJAI

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui proses kinerja pelayanan publik pada Dinas Kependudukan dan Pencatatan Sipil Kabupaten Sinjai yang dilaksanakan oleh birokrasi pemerintahan menyangkut pemenuhan hak-hak sipil masyarakat dalam penerbitan Dokumen Kependudukan khususnya kartu Keluarga dan KTP-elektronik serta menggambarkan faktor pendukung dan penghambat yang mempengaruhi pelayanan publik. Penelitian ini menggunakan metode kualitatif. Informan penelitian terdiri dari kepala dinas, sekertaris, kabid kependudukan petugas pelayanan dan masyarakat dengan jumlah informan 9 orang, sumber data terdiri dari data primer dan sekunder yang diperoleh dari tehnik pengumpulan data dengan melakukan observasi, wawancara, dan dokumentasi. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa pelayanan yang diselenggarakan oleh Dinas Kependudukan dan Pencatatan Sipil Kabupaten Sinjai sudah cukup baik dan sistematis. Pelayanan yang diberikan sudah dapat mengakomodir kebutuhan masyarakat tentang dokumen kependudukan secara legal, formal sesuai dengan peraturan perundang-undangan khususnya dokumen Kartu Keluarga dan KTP-elektronik. Dengan mengaplikasikan teknologi berbasis komputer yang terintegrasi langsung kepusat dan seluruh Dukcapil seIndonesia serta dengan kompetensi petugas yang mampu mengoperasikan komputer untuk mendukung kinerja petugas. Namun yang perlu ditingkatkan adalah Sumber daya Manusia, peningkatan Anggaran yang dapat menunjang kesejahteraan petugas pelayanan serta peningkatan sarana dan prasarana pelayanan yang merupakan factor penghambat pelayanan sehingga dapat memberikan pelayanan prima kepada Masyarakat. This study aims to determine the performance process of public services at the Department of Population and Civil Registration in Sinjai Regency carried out by the government bureaucracy regarding the fulfillment of civil rights in the issuance of Population Documents, especially family cards and electronic ID cards, and to describe the supporting and inhibiting factors that affect public services. This study uses a qualitative method. The research informants consisted of the head of the department, secretary, head of population unit, service officers with a total of 9 informants, with data sources consisting of primary and secondary data obtained from data collection techniques through observing, interviewing, and documenting. The results showed that the services provided by the Department of Population and Civil Registration of Sinjai Regency were quite good and systematic. The services provided have been able to accommodate the needs of the community regarding population documents legally, formally in accordance with statutory regulations, especially family cards and electronic ID cards. By applying computer-based technology that is integrated directly into the center and all the related departments throughout Indonesia with the competence of officers who are able to operate computers to support the performance of officers. Haowever, what needs to be improved is Human Resources, increasing the Budget that can support the welfare of service personnels as well as the improvement of service facilities and infrastructures, which are factors that hinder the service so that they can provide excellent service to the community.

The Fishing Cat Prionailurus viverrinus (Bennett, 1833) (Mammalia: Carnivora: Felidae) in Shuklaphanta National Park, Nepal

The Fishing Cat Prionailurus viverrinus is known to occur in the Terai region since at least the late 1920s. Contemporary locality records of the Fishing Cat in this region are widely spaced, and the knowledge about the connectivity between these localities is still deficient. We present the first photographic evidence for the presence of the Fishing Cat in far western Nepal. In spring and winter 2016, we obtained 30 notionally independent events of the Fishing Cat in the floodplain of Shuklaphanta National Park at elevations of 181–221 m. This population unit may be connected to units in Indian protected areas. Further targeted surveys in adjacent wetlands and wildlife corridors are warranted to clarify its range in the Indian and Nepal Terai.

Distribución espacial, estructura social y amenazas de conservación de una pequeña comunidad de delfines nariz de botella, Tursiops trunca (Odontoceti: Delphinidae) en Ecuador

Socio-ecological and conservation aspects of a small community of bottlenose dolphins Tursiops truncatus (Odontoceti: Delphinidae) in Santa Elena, Ecuador. A resident community of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) has been studied irregularly between 2005 and 2018 around the tip of the Santa Elena Peninsula, Ecuador (2°11'S, 81°0.7'W). Opportunistic sightings and systematic surveys from the beach and at sea from a boat were carried out along 40 km of coast, accounting for 917.2 km of tracking by car from land and 707.4 km of boat tracking by sea. Average group size was 5.31 dolphins/group (SD= 1.97, range 1-10), with no significant changes throughout the study period. From land, however, the group size was underestimated 32% on the average. This small dolphin community currently has only nine individuals, including six adults, one immature and two calves. The relative abundance ranged between 0.03 dolphins/km in the northwestern part and 0.32 dolphins/km in the south, where dolphins concentrate their activities, possibly because human activities are less intense. Dolphins were generally distributed in the first 200 m from the shore, reaching up to 1,200 in the northern shallower part and where port and tourist activities concentrate. The dolphins’ speed was significantly higher when they were followed from a boat at close range (5.87 km/h) than when they were monitored from the beach (2.9 km/h) (P < 0.01), which suggests that boat tracking had an effect on dolphin´s movements. Pairwise cluster analysis showed that animals from this community show high rates of association among each other (average 0.67, range 0.01-1.0), indicating this is highly cohesive population unit. Dolphins also showed high level of residence (average occurrence index = 0.62). During the study, two main threats were identified, a gillnet fishery in the southwestern part and an intense fishing boat traffic in the northwestern. This coastal bottlenose dolphin community is the smallest of this species ever reported in the Gulf of Guayaquil, probably is a remnant of a larger population that would be in process of extinction. Most of the study area is currently part of a coastal-marine protected area created in 2008, which offers an opportunity for the recovery and conservation of this dolphin community. Given the fragility of this population unit, we recommend to environment authorities addressing potential threats by eliminating gillnets, implementing an exclusion zone for fishing gear and fishing boat traffic of 1 km width from the shore and limit the speed of any type of vessel to 10 knots within the reserve.

The Relationship Between Social Deprivation and a Weekend Emergency Medical Admission

Background: Deprivation increases admission rates; the specific effect of deprivation with regard to weekend admissions is unknown. Methods: We calculated annual weekend admission rates for each small area population unit and related these to quintiles of Deprivation Index from 2002-2014. Univariate and multivariable risk estimates were calculated using truncated Poisson regression. Results: There were 30,794 weekend admissions in 16,665 patients. The admission rate was substantially higher for more deprived areas, 12.7 per 1000 (95%CI 9.4, 14.7) vs 4.6 per 1000 (95%CI 3.3, 5.8). More deprived patients admitted at the weekend had a significantly lower 30-day in-hospital mortality (10.3% vs 14.5%, p<0.001). Conclusion: Deprivation is a powerful determinant of weekend admissions, however these comprise a group of patients with better outcomes.

Managing a complex population structure: exploring the importance of information from fisheries-independent sources

Natural resource managers aim to manage fish stocks at sustainable levels. Often, management of these stocks is based on the results of analytical stock assessments. Accurate catch data, which can be attributed to a specific population unit and reflects the population structure, are needed for these approaches. Often though, the quality of the catch data is compromised when dealing with a complex population structure where fish of different population units mix in a fishery. The herring population units west of the British Isles are prone to mixing. Here, the inability to perfectly allocate the fish caught to the population unit they originate from, due to classification problems, poses problems for management. These mixing proportions are often unknown; therefore, we use simulation modelling combined with management strategy evaluation to evaluate the role fisheries-independent surveys can play in an assessment to provide unbiased results, irrespective of population unit mixing and classification success. We show that failure to account for mixing is one of the major drivers of biased estimates of population abundance, affecting biomass reference points and MSY targets. When mixing of population units occurs, the role a survey can play to provide unbiased assessment results is limited. Either different assessment models should be employed or stock status should be considered from the survey data alone. In addition, correctly classifying the origin of fish is especially important for those population units that are markedly smaller in size than other units in the population complex. Without high classification success rates, smaller population units are extremely vulnerable to overexploitation.

DISTRIBUTION OF FIRST INSTAR NYMPHS OF ADELGES PICEAE (HOMOPTERA: PHYLLOXERIDAE) ON BRANCHES OF BALSAM FIR, ABIES BALSAMEA, AFTER COLONIZATION

Balsam woolly aphid nymphs, Adelges piceae (Ratz.), settle primarily in the apical 3-year growth of a branch. This portion of a branch is a natural population unit that can be designated a sample universe for detailed studies of aphid survival and mortality.